This course examines language’s powerful role in shaping and
expressing our experiences, ideas, and identities. We will explore
verbal artistry in the ritual practices of different groups, asking:
How do linguistic and ritual forms work to grab people’s attention,
change lives, and convey ultimate authority? What is the meaning of
magic and how does language work as a magical resource? How do
messages about gender and sexuality gent entangled in ritual
language? How do people use ritual language to solidify, counter,
and transform social roles and cultural norms? You will act as
participant-observers in ethnographic studies of ritual language in
film and other media, as well as within the Collins community.